The teams are standing in the way of the 9,000 construction jobs and 15,000 permanent jobs the retail and entertainment complex is expected to create, Donovan and Mitchell wrote.

The Republican leaders also played down the teams' concerns about the expected traffic at the site.

"This is New Jersey and traffic is a way of life every day, not just when the teams are playing," Donovan and Mitchell wrote.

The op-ed drew the ire of the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, a nonprofit advocating for reduced car dependency in the region. Tri-State labeled Donovan and Mitchell "losers" in a blog post.

"Such claims ignore the huge financial burden brought by automobile congestion, which costs the average tri-state auto commuter over $1,100 annually," the organization wrote, citing a study by the Texas A&M Traffic Institute.

Representatives from both teams and Triple Five, the developers of American Dream, argued on Oct. 10 over how much congestion would result from the addition of amusement and water parks to the complex. Both sides offered a New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority committee vastly different projections of traffic at the site.

The New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority must decide whether to approve the additions, but has not set a date for the vote.